If you’d asked a Sprint customer yesterday which phone they were upgrading to, I’m sure the majority answer would have been the HTC EVO 3D. The EVO 4G has been a dominant force on Sprint since its launch. As successor to the throne, the EVO 3D didn’t appear to have a competitor on Sprint. Now it seems Sprint customers who are due for an upgrade this summer have a really interesting choice ahead of them, considering today’s announcement of the Motorola Photon 4G. At first glance, these two devices seem to be side by side in nearly every way. So, let’s break it down feature by feature and see which one comes out on top!

Processor

Since their launch, NVIDIA Tegra 2 devices have pretty much had the run of the joint with no real competitors. These asynchronous Dual Core devices have been cropping up everywhere, wielding their Tegra Zone game store and improved overall performance as shiny baubles to draw in the mobile gearheads of the world. With the impending release of dual core Snapdragon devices like the EVO 3D, the world wants to know which processor is better. Here’s what we know:

- Both NVIDIA and Qualcomm might have been playing dirty with the performance benchmarks on these devices when compared to the other. Qualcomm’s amazing benchmarks were done on a 1.5 GHZ dual core with no battery optimization while plugged into the wall. And they accuse NVIDIA of using benchmarking software that catered especially to the Tegra 2 when testing. Since we’re looking at a 1.2 GHZ dual core and not a 1.5 GHZ chipset with battery optimizing software onboard, it’s entirely likely that the devices’ performances will actually be much closer together.

-Qualcomm has chosen to use an asynchronous architecture for their dual core systems in an attempt to improve battery life without sacrificing performance. This architecture allows the cores to run at different speeds. So, if one is not in use it can simply slow down to save battery. Unfortunately, Android 2.3 isn’t really optimized to take advantage of this architecture. HTC will need to implement some serious secret sauce or the processor won’t be the superhero we’ve all been looking for.

- Early comparisons of the HTC Sensation to other Tegra 2 devices, like the G2X, shows the G2X as a faster device. However, since the Sensation has an 8260 processor and the Evo 3D has an 8660, this does not necessarily mean the EVO 3D will suffer the same fate.

Video

We’re increasingly connecting our phones to other things to turn them into even more powerful devices. Motorola has pioneered the WebTop system for portable computing on your phone. But, if you aren’t willing to shell out the extra cash for an almost-laptop, you’ll probably use the HDMI-out through either a multimedia dock or a straight cable. If you’re a big fan of playing games on your phone, this video shows how Motorola made this extremely cool and easy.

With the exception to the kickstand, the Evo 3D can do all those things as well (with a non-Tegra Zone game of course). However, where the Evo 3D takes the advantage is with MHL. Rather then have a separate HDMI port, the USB port doubles as an HDMI port–thanks to MHL. This means when you’re playing a game or watching a movie on your phone-powered TV, you’re also charging your phone with a single cable. This is not the case with normal HDMI.

GhostBlur vs. Sense

Both HTC and Motorola seem to think they know better than everyone else when it comes to creating an enjoyable user experience. HTC’s Sense UI update provides an extremely pretty interface with some very nice 3D transitions. And that silly clock is so popular, HTC ported it to Windows so people could use it on their computers. When it comes to comparing the two, Motorola’s GhostBlur UI typically ends up the butt of the joke.

With their new Sprint partnership, however, Motorola saw fit to make some “improvements” to the UI we saw on the Atrix. The Photon will come armed not only with GhostBlur, but also Sprint’s SprintID software (the quick-theming utility Sprint unveiled last year). SprintID will allow users to quickly theme their entire phone and provide apps that are appropriate to the theme.

I see this really as a personal preference. While I would lean more towards the pretty new SenseUI, far be it for me to judge someone who wants to combine the Atrix experience with the so far less-than-successful SprintID–especially since I haven’t experienced it myself yet.

The Camera

This one I do have some pretty strong thoughts on. Even if the EVO 3D took simply stunning 3D pictures, I wouldn’t be able to share them with anyone since there isn’t a single person I know that is even remotely interested in 3D right now. You can record 3D videos and upload them to 3D Youtube, in which case other people would be able to enjoy them. But 3D is just not used widely enough for me to actually want to take a 3D picture over a 2D picture. Unfortunately, when you want to take a 2D picture on the Evo, you only get a 5 Megapixel camera.

The Photon’s 8 Megapixel camera is really enticing by comparison. It’s coupled with Motorola’s modified camera app for Android, which is probably my favorite app to come from the Motoblur experience. This app puts tools like Panorama picture and color effects at your fingertips, and I can only imagine how nice pictures will look on the qHD display.

Final Thoughts

There’s a lot these devices have in common. The 4.3″ qHD display, access to Sprint’s 4G network, similar shape and size, 1GB of RAM with plenty of storage options and front-facing cameras. There’s also a fair bit we don’t know about these devices, since neither of them are out yet. Battery life, touch response, whether or not they will ship with unlockable (or unlocked) bootloaders–all still a mystery. And each could shift your choice in this decision. For many, this decision will affect them for the next 2 years, so it’s a significant one to make. With all that we know about these devices, which would you choose?

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I’m sure the camera on the Motorola will be similar to my Atrix 4G. So, therefor I say the camera sucks in low light. Also, the Battery on the Motorola should of been 1930mAh like the Atrix 4G.
As for the EVO, I don’t know or even care to know the specs on that phone. No one is interested in a 3D phone because it’s useless in today’s market that is dominated by 2D phones and applications. GL!

I never get comments like these. You make it seem like the entire experience is in 3D. Its only for pictures & video, & you have the option to turn that off. Even then the phone knows how to convert them back to normal so other phones can view them when sending MMS or uploading pictures. Its an extra feature. Think of it as Evolved or future proofed. I’m pretty sure a few high end phones have at least one feature that is rarely used. Does that make the phone pointless? No. It gives you options. Its fun. Its there. Its for the consumer. It has nothing to do with the rest of the functionality of the phone. Sensation is the same phone so

The 3D part of the Evo 3D is irrelevant. No one cares about it, but the rest of the phone still blows away just about any other phone ever made until this point. So even if you took away the 3D aspect of it, it’ll still most likely be the most popular Sprint phone.

“Most likely” states that you believe that the 3D aspect of the phone will make it more popular. Yet I thought no one cared about 3D? If no one cared about 3D these companies wouldn’t be investing millions into their 3D products, and its every company. Yes, sales are slow but picking up. Do you know how many times I’ve heard “no one cares,” with just about every product and new feature in said product ever. Y’all need to calm down about the 3D thing, they are not shoving it down your throat like you think.

I actually am looking forward to the 3D movies, games and content you can watch glasses free. I won’t use it a lot, but I think it will be fun.
However, I personally wish they would have put a super high quality 2D camera lens on it instead of two mediocre 3D lenses.

Since when is a 5 megapixel camera mediocre? The 8 megapixel camera is NOW becoming the norm. This mediocre camera as you say does 1080p in 2D & does 720p in 3D. Unless you want to take picture & print it the size of a door, the extra megapixels really don’t make such a huge difference. For normal photo printing & to view them on a PC the difference is minimal at best. Now if they were to put a 12 megapixel camera then you may have a point. The difference from 5 to 8 megapixels is not that much at all! So your mediocre comment is a little convoluted.

I agree. However, note that megapixels doesn’t mean as much as processing power behind it. All the mp rating is, is how big the file is (or how big the picture), and is NO indication of how good the quality of the picture will be. Already tests have shown that the 5mp camera on the evo 3d produces better pictures than the evo 4g’s 8mp camera. That processing power is also evident in the fact that the 5mp camera is able to shoot 1080p video that is not only bigger, but better (quality and frame rate) than the old 8mp camera. No matter how you look at it, the Evo 3D is a better picture taker than the Evo 4G. A bigger question in my mind is will it take better pictures than the Motorola Photon 4G. I like the idea of being able to put a prepaid sim card for the country I’m in. I love the webtop thing (there is already a hack for the Atrix to do webtop without the dock). If I had to guess, I’d say the NVIDEA processor will be better for gaming, but who needs better when both are awesome? I do like the ability to use the Wii controller and use HDMI out – this would actually be an often used feature for me. 3D is trivial (neat, but not important) for me and the things the Photon has over the Evo 3D are more important to me. I would also note, in favor of the Evo 3D, the async processing of the CPU will certainly come into play when there is support – and it will make a big difference in battery life.

HTC has a great track record on premium Android devices. I’ve gotten my updates to the EVO at better than average pace, and I think that commitment will continue. While the hardware might be similar on the first day, HTC just has a much better track record right now. It’s not that I dislike Moto – it’s just that they don’t have the same track record.

One thing that you forgot to mention is that in order for MHL to work on the EVO3D you have to either have a TV that supports it(which aren’t out yet) or you have to buy a separate adapter(which you can’t find anywhere). It may look good on paper but besides not having a kickstand and putting the USB port on the side instead of at the bottom, this was the worst decision HTC has made with the design of this phone….. Im still going to get it though.

as stated you are listing the mhl as an advatage and at this point in time it is far from that. the adapter cable ive read is 35-40 bucks but i am not sure where they even found them i cant. no hardware out right now is sending a charge through hdmi ports so while the mhl standard suppoorts that no hardware i have seen does. and im not geting rid of a 2 month old 1000 tv so it can charge through hdmi. This may be a nice feature in the future but not at this time its something that will cost more money to use and well see how well it works and if the switch that tells it to go from a usb port to a hdmi port actaully works right and lasts. its definatley the latest thing but the companion hardware isnt there. i did hear the adapter cable has a usb on it so you can charge through that at same time. so now you have to buy a special hdmi cable and the dongle. so probably 50-70 bucks to use hdmi. my micro hdmi cable cost 3 bucks.

MHL doesn’t require a special cable. It doesn’t have a special connector. It runs through the USB or HDMI port. If the devices are connected are MHL aware, then MHL is used and your phone is charged. If they aren’t, then you get regular HDMI or USB…

its really hard to find the mhl to hdmi adapter because the people that control & regulate hdmi standards are not to fond of mhl so its not officially supported & its why its not sold in stores as regular mini hdmi cables are. heres a link for the official samsung mhl to hdmi adapter, i tried to find an htc version but ran into this one first. ” http://www.wirelessground.com/samsung-mhl-to-hdmi-adapter.html “

This is a happy time on sprint one great device after another which helps us all have choice I appreciate sprint for that alone. Regardless of anything what is proven is the EVO BRAND ON SPRINT the overall commitment HTC has with SPRINT to provide quality for the BRAND that started it all as far as 4g android device. I heard from engadget as well as mobiletechreview that the battery life on the Sensation is much better than the battery life on the Galaxy S2 so that bodes well for our Evo 3d. HTC knew exactly what they were doing by selecting to have the asynchronous dualcore processor as well as installing a battery management feature on both the sensation and Evo 3d that people have not seem before. This alone will show that the battery life on these devices will be something not seen on any HTC device so YES PEOPLE WILL BE SURPRISED. Even with the fact the Photon 4g is a very nice device device moto is not HTC and photon will never be an evo. As a current evo 4g owner there is no doubt that 2 fridays from now the Evo 3d will be mines. Choice is the winner here and as days move forward sprint has proven they understand all there customers needs.

Are you serious?
“However, since the Sensation has an 8260 processor and the Evo 3D has an 8660, this does not necessarily mean the EVO 3D will suffer the same fate.”

This Russell folly Guy is so retarded the sensation and the evo3D have the same processor. largernumber (8660 v8260) doesnot mean its better theyare boththe same msm8x60 processor . the 2 inthe 8260 signifies that it has gsm modem on it while thee 6 in 8660 signifies that it has cdma capabilities.

And look what Russel wrote in the Camera section. The guy is totally out in understanding the technology. He buys like a retard those megapixel numbers and thinks that 8MP must be better then 5MP on that tiny sensor. And then sallivating how stunning that 8Mp images will look on 0.5MP LCD screen. Is he 15 y.o.?

Ok guys, I have a confession to make. I have decided that i will not get the evo 3d, but will instead get the droid bionic. I must also confess that yes, my name really is dick, and I’m damn proud. I apologize If i irritated anyone and would be more than glad to provide you all with a complimentary ass licking on the house.

—-”Since their launch, NVIDIA Tegra 2 devices have pretty much had the run of the joint with no real competitors. These asynchronous Dual Core devices have been cropping up everywhere…”

As explained in some of the articles you cite/link to, the Tegra 2 is in fact a synchronous dual core SoC. The Qualcomm Snapdragon is the asynchronous core SoC.

—-”Early comparisons of the HTC Sensation to other Tegra 2 devices, like the G2X, shows the G2X as a faster device. However, since the Sensation has an 8260 processor and the Evo 3D has an 8660, this does not necessarily mean the EVO 3D will suffer the same fate.”

The Qualcomm dual core Snapdragon SoC model number is MSM8x60 — the x can either be a 2 which denotes GSM radio compatibility, or a 6 which denotes CDMA radio compatibility. Otherwise, from a processor perspective, they are the exact same CPU.

—-”Rather then have a separate HDMI port, the USB port doubles as an HDMI port—thanks to MHL. This means when you’re playing a game or watching a movie on your phone-powered TV, you’re also charging your phone with a single cable. This is not the case with normal HDMI.”

The MHL is designed to be used as a USB or HDMI connection, but in order to utilize HDMI out *and* charge at the same time, one needs an MHL-compliant TV. However, without an MHL compliant TV, one can still utilize the HDMI, it’s just that there will be no charging of the device.

—-”Unfortunately, when you want to take a 2D picture on the Evo, you only get a 5 Megapixel camera.”

I’ll just point out that upon the close launch between the iPhone 4 and Evo 4G, the Evo sported an 8 MP camera versus the 5 MP sensor in the iPhone 4. However, even as an Evo 4G owner and Android evangelist, I’m ready to openly admit that the iPhone 4′s camera is much, much better–particularly in low light. Anyone should know that megapixel counts only tell a very small, narrow part of the story of any digital camera.

I’ll also point out that one developing controversy in terms of a category not yet mentioned is the screen type/technology. Despite both phones sporting qHD displays, all Motorola devices on qHD have been using Pentile configurations which have been criticized by some. Thus far, the qHD display on the HTC Sensation uses a traditional RGB configuration. It’s not absolutely clear yet what kind of screen and the quality thereof will be on either the Evo 3D or the Photon, but you can be sure that it will be a huge point of contention between the two phones.

the photon has an locked bootloader and has moto blur and that is shit. 2.3 mm headphone jack and vga ff camers. The photon looked a little laggy and the evo 3d has sense and better processor. evo 3d owns the photon 4g

HTC design, HTC build quality, HTC sense, proven HTC support and quick updates, unlocked bootloader and wonderful HTC development community + opensense, 3d (gimmick or not), asynchronous dual-core, MHL when its supported. full HDMI mirroring, 8MP camera on the Evo 4G wasn’t that great, so I’m glad they went with a (hopefully) better 5MP sensor instead of marketing a poor quality 8MP camera.

I’m sorry, but this review was kind of pointless. Once you actually stack them up and compare the devices, not just the specs, the Photon is no contender. Thanks to this, I’ve sold my Evo 4G and pre-ordered my Evo 3D, the 24th can’t get here quick enough.

There is a reason the Evo 4G is still one of the top selling and best rated smartphones. HTC and Sprint really delivered and now have created a new brand on its reputation. You can expect the Evo 3D to really excel and set the benchmark for others to follow again.

I remember when the EVO 4G was brand new and everyone was bashing the 8mp camera saying it wasn’t sh*t compared to the iPhone 4 5mp just cuz its gotta higher number doesn’t mean its better. And please if u pick photon over 3d your mentally challenged unless you root ur phone your stuck with BLURRRrR. Even worse than a psycho ex gf lololololol

Im still kind of undecided. Theres advantages and disadvantagesto both sides. I love my evo 4g. But I think if the photon had a better ui I would take it. Even tho processor is clocked at 1ghz compared tot he evo 3ds 1.2ghz the tegra2 chip is running the arm cortex-a9 cores wich have more transistors, process more information. The rest of the chip is designed better too with better multimedia and image processing then the snapdragons “scorpion” arm cortex-a8 like setup. Even with those facts, fuck blur, ill probably get the evo 3d

This post is old, but in case you haven’t made your decision yet, or chose the photon and still wand sense back as I did, read my post below. If you want some links that make it very easy to root your phone unlock the boot loader and install sense UI on the Photon just ask.

Let’s be clear: the Sensation pushes 35% more pixels on its screen than the G2X, and when Quadrant benchmarks are run they run in native resolution. So the fact that it gets the same score as G2x while being 35% higher resolution (qHD people) means it is a TON faster. Try comparing the benchmark run at the same resolution and you’ll see the advantage the newer and faster Qualcomm chip has.

A month ago I would have said HTC no question. However, after the mess they’ve created with the “updates” for the EVO 4G, I’m ready to swear off HTC for good. Since the updates (yes, two of them, because the first one was so bad, and there are still a ton of issues even after the “fix”), SenseUI crashes AT LEAST 10 times a day, and that’s with me not using my phone a lot. If I use it heavily, that number easily doubles. And that’s not the only problem I’ve been having, just the most annoying. I’m not the only one either, and many people are having all sorts of problems with the update. What’s worse, HTC has offered NO response to this. Due to this level of ineptitude and neglect, I’ve lost all faith in them. I just hope people will take this behavior into consideration before deciding to give HTC more money for another phone they will almost undoubtedly provide lackluster updates and support for before ruining it as they have the EVO 4G. It has not escaped me that after a very long time of no updates, they finally release one for it which causes a mess of problems along the same time they release a nice, new phone.

Couldn’t make the decision when upgrading my phone, photon or 3d. Primary reason I wanted to update is processors and memory prior I was using htc 4g which had been one of my best phones for some time.
Stumped between the two here is something different that helped me make the choice (not turning the board into a political one either.)
HTC is from taiwan
Motorola is from China
Motorola left the usa and really doesn’t contribute much back and even asked to put made in American because they were previously an american company (sort of still are.)
But I would rather support the company from Taiwan right now than china and an american company that sold out for higher profits.

Evo 3d is certainly going to be a ground breaking phone with the 3D display. After all it has never been features on any smartphone ever before. But i guess time has come now where we look beyond its multidimensional display. It also has excellent connectivity features like DLNA, radio, MicroSD slot, ability to be used as a Wi-Fi hot spot and a dedicated USB storage support. And the best part is its processor clock speed of 2Ã—1.2Ghz, which is around 20% faster than the upcoming iPhone 5.

I’m extremely experienced in phones given my background of 16 of the greatest phones out from Tmobile as well as Sprint. I owned the Evo 3D from the day of launch and used the phone up until the day of launch of the Photon 4G. I then got the Photon and played with both for about a month. It was an extremely hard decision for me to make. I loved the 3D, it was a ton of fun at social events, parties, I even managed to take a picture of a beer pong ball coming right at the phone and it appeared to be coming out of the screen. I loved the UI, the sense experience is probably what made it the hardest decision for me to make. (I have since put the EVO 3D rom on my Photon and am extremely relieved. What got me was:

1) I use the kickstand about 20 times a day….

2) The speaker on the Evo 3D is near HORRIBLE! I couldn’t even hear my family talking while using Skype making the front camera pointless for me, even after rooting the phone and doing some tweaks to change the power to the speaker. (The Photon is the loudest phone I have ever used)

3) The HDMI feature is cool and all on the Evo although you need to use an adapter in which you plug your power and an HDMI cable into making the experience more of a pain in the *ss. I like that you can use the adapter without having to have a micro HDMI cable, however I just bought a micro to standard HDMI adapter for traveling. I rather just have to cables into my phone then a clunky adapter. (adapter also sold separately unlike most other phones with the same feature)

4) The 3D screen on the Evo gives you the feel of a thin piece of glass separating you from the UI. This however minimal drove me to loving the qHD display of the Photon (especially how outstandingly bright the phone is while the Evo always seemed a bit… dim.

5) The 3D is extremely funHowever when not in 3D the 2D camera was always a bit disappointing even after adjusting all the settings to take the best pictures possible. Don’t get me wrong, it took great pictures just not what you would expect coming from the Predecessor of the EVO 4G, but after a while it lost it’s spark in my eye and I found myself never really using the 3D. As I grew more and more disappointed in the 2D, I began to miss the kickstand and speaker on my Photon.

6) Both phones feel great in your hand, And I most definitely prefer the look and feel of the Evo 3D. It just seems more bold and Badass.

7) The Evo lagged at times when playing games, this was very disappointing. (lagged on Angrybirds…)

8) As awesome as the Qualcomm is, Android is not ready for it and the battery dies insanely fast as if your using one battery for 2 phones. The Lithium Polymer battery on the photon coupled with the Tegra 2 has been your standard lifetime, however with minimal use it last outstandingly longer then most devices I’ve owned.

9) I’m not 100% on which processor is “faster”, but the sense UI is so overloaded that the photon was an obviously faster experience.. The Snapdragon is just not a graphics processor and in the end I’m about how fast the phone is while using it and not whats been “tested” as a faster processor (the debate on these 2 processors is just as bad as the debate between iPhone and android).

10) My decision was I passed down the 3D to another line on my account and kept the Photon.

If your the kind of person who wants to show off your phone at social events and make iPhone users think twice about their decision, then the Evo 3D is certainly for you . However if your the person who wants a better “everyday use” phone and your a nerd who is going to stretch the limits of your device or you want to be able to kick out the stand, turn on Pandora, hop in the shower and still be able to hear it, then the Photon is for you.

I hope this helps some people make a decision. I also have a feeling a fan-boy will see my iPhone statement and get defensive so I’ll throw it out there that I also have an iPhone 4s… It’s a great Phone, Camera and Mp3 player…. I just prefer joining a technology that has no limits. Maybe it’s just me :)

Ive owened the photon for 4 months now and let me tell you i couldnt be happier< I dont get it ? the motoblur is sleek nice classy fast, Man I cant believe these old comments and people bashing the photon if they would have only known how much of a flop the evo 3d was, my god its embarrassing for people that have the 3d , seriously.ive heard about 3d call quality and sound from friends who own them. The call quality on the photon is amazing the speaker phone loud crisp and proud towering over evo, I never drop calls and always get a great wifi signal. The phone just got an update yesterday for full 1080p video recording, now im just waiting for my ICS update.haa , i might be waiting awhile .. but you know what I dont mind, I mean this phone just runs and runs great no matter what. Sorry guys better move on like HTC did and put all your money on the EVO 4G LTE which actually does look like a quality piece.

I’m sure the camera on the Motorola will be similar to my Atrix 4G. So, therefor I say the camera sucks in low light. Also, the Battery on the Motorola should of been 1930mAh like the Atrix 4G.
As for the EVO, I don’t know or even care to know the specs on that phone. No one is interested in a 3D phone because it’s useless in today’s market that is dominated by 2D phones and applications. GL!

I never get comments like these. You make it seem like the entire experience is in 3D. Its only for pictures & video, & you have the option to turn that off. Even then the phone knows how to convert them back to normal so other phones can view them when sending MMS or uploading pictures. Its an extra feature. Think of it as Evolved or future proofed. I’m pretty sure a few high end phones have at least one feature that is rarely used. Does that make the phone pointless? No. It gives you options. Its fun. Its there. Its for the consumer. It has nothing to do with the rest of the functionality of the phone. Sensation is the same phone so

The 3D part of the Evo 3D is irrelevant. No one cares about it, but the rest of the phone still blows away just about any other phone ever made until this point. So even if you took away the 3D aspect of it, it’ll still most likely be the most popular Sprint phone.

“Most likely” states that you believe that the 3D aspect of the phone will make it more popular. Yet I thought no one cared about 3D? If no one cared about 3D these companies wouldn’t be investing millions into their 3D products, and its every company. Yes, sales are slow but picking up. Do you know how many times I’ve heard “no one cares,” with just about every product and new feature in said product ever. Y’all need to calm down about the 3D thing, they are not shoving it down your throat like you think.

I actually am looking forward to the 3D movies, games and content you can watch glasses free. I won’t use it a lot, but I think it will be fun.
However, I personally wish they would have put a super high quality 2D camera lens on it instead of two mediocre 3D lenses.

Since when is a 5 megapixel camera mediocre? The 8 megapixel camera is NOW becoming the norm. This mediocre camera as you say does 1080p in 2D & does 720p in 3D. Unless you want to take picture & print it the size of a door, the extra megapixels really don’t make such a huge difference. For normal photo printing & to view them on a PC the difference is minimal at best. Now if they were to put a 12 megapixel camera then you may have a point. The difference from 5 to 8 megapixels is not that much at all! So your mediocre comment is a little convoluted.

I agree. However, note that megapixels doesn’t mean as much as processing power behind it. All the mp rating is, is how big the file is (or how big the picture), and is NO indication of how good the quality of the picture will be. Already tests have shown that the 5mp camera on the evo 3d produces better pictures than the evo 4g’s 8mp camera. That processing power is also evident in the fact that the 5mp camera is able to shoot 1080p video that is not only bigger, but better (quality and frame rate) than the old 8mp camera. No matter how you look at it, the Evo 3D is a better picture taker than the Evo 4G. A bigger question in my mind is will it take better pictures than the Motorola Photon 4G. I like the idea of being able to put a prepaid sim card for the country I’m in. I love the webtop thing (there is already a hack for the Atrix to do webtop without the dock). If I had to guess, I’d say the NVIDEA processor will be better for gaming, but who needs better when both are awesome? I do like the ability to use the Wii controller and use HDMI out – this would actually be an often used feature for me. 3D is trivial (neat, but not important) for me and the things the Photon has over the Evo 3D are more important to me. I would also note, in favor of the Evo 3D, the async processing of the CPU will certainly come into play when there is support – and it will make a big difference in battery life.

HTC has a great track record on premium Android devices. I’ve gotten my updates to the EVO at better than average pace, and I think that commitment will continue. While the hardware might be similar on the first day, HTC just has a much better track record right now. It’s not that I dislike Moto – it’s just that they don’t have the same track record.

One thing that you forgot to mention is that in order for MHL to work on the EVO3D you have to either have a TV that supports it(which aren’t out yet) or you have to buy a separate adapter(which you can’t find anywhere). It may look good on paper but besides not having a kickstand and putting the USB port on the side instead of at the bottom, this was the worst decision HTC has made with the design of this phone….. Im still going to get it though.

as stated you are listing the mhl as an advatage and at this point in time it is far from that. the adapter cable ive read is 35-40 bucks but i am not sure where they even found them i cant. no hardware out right now is sending a charge through hdmi ports so while the mhl standard suppoorts that no hardware i have seen does. and im not geting rid of a 2 month old 1000 tv so it can charge through hdmi. This may be a nice feature in the future but not at this time its something that will cost more money to use and well see how well it works and if the switch that tells it to go from a usb port to a hdmi port actaully works right and lasts. its definatley the latest thing but the companion hardware isnt there. i did hear the adapter cable has a usb on it so you can charge through that at same time. so now you have to buy a special hdmi cable and the dongle. so probably 50-70 bucks to use hdmi. my micro hdmi cable cost 3 bucks.

MHL doesn’t require a special cable. It doesn’t have a special connector. It runs through the USB or HDMI port. If the devices are connected are MHL aware, then MHL is used and your phone is charged. If they aren’t, then you get regular HDMI or USB…

its really hard to find the mhl to hdmi adapter because the people that control & regulate hdmi standards are not to fond of mhl so its not officially supported & its why its not sold in stores as regular mini hdmi cables are. heres a link for the official samsung mhl to hdmi adapter, i tried to find an htc version but ran into this one first. ” http://www.wirelessground.com/samsung-mhl-to-hdmi-adapter.html “

This is a happy time on sprint one great device after another which helps us all have choice I appreciate sprint for that alone. Regardless of anything what is proven is the EVO BRAND ON SPRINT the overall commitment HTC has with SPRINT to provide quality for the BRAND that started it all as far as 4g android device. I heard from engadget as well as mobiletechreview that the battery life on the Sensation is much better than the battery life on the Galaxy S2 so that bodes well for our Evo 3d. HTC knew exactly what they were doing by selecting to have the asynchronous dualcore processor as well as installing a battery management feature on both the sensation and Evo 3d that people have not seem before. This alone will show that the battery life on these devices will be something not seen on any HTC device so YES PEOPLE WILL BE SURPRISED. Even with the fact the Photon 4g is a very nice device device moto is not HTC and photon will never be an evo. As a current evo 4g owner there is no doubt that 2 fridays from now the Evo 3d will be mines. Choice is the winner here and as days move forward sprint has proven they understand all there customers needs.

Are you serious?
“However, since the Sensation has an 8260 processor and the Evo 3D has an 8660, this does not necessarily mean the EVO 3D will suffer the same fate.”

This Russell folly Guy is so retarded the sensation and the evo3D have the same processor. largernumber (8660 v8260) doesnot mean its better theyare boththe same msm8x60 processor . the 2 inthe 8260 signifies that it has gsm modem on it while thee 6 in 8660 signifies that it has cdma capabilities.

And look what Russel wrote in the Camera section. The guy is totally out in understanding the technology. He buys like a retard those megapixel numbers and thinks that 8MP must be better then 5MP on that tiny sensor. And then sallivating how stunning that 8Mp images will look on 0.5MP LCD screen. Is he 15 y.o.?

Ok guys, I have a confession to make. I have decided that i will not get the evo 3d, but will instead get the droid bionic. I must also confess that yes, my name really is dick, and I’m damn proud. I apologize If i irritated anyone and would be more than glad to provide you all with a complimentary ass licking on the house.

—-”Since their launch, NVIDIA Tegra 2 devices have pretty much had the run of the joint with no real competitors. These asynchronous Dual Core devices have been cropping up everywhere…”

As explained in some of the articles you cite/link to, the Tegra 2 is in fact a synchronous dual core SoC. The Qualcomm Snapdragon is the asynchronous core SoC.

—-”Early comparisons of the HTC Sensation to other Tegra 2 devices, like the G2X, shows the G2X as a faster device. However, since the Sensation has an 8260 processor and the Evo 3D has an 8660, this does not necessarily mean the EVO 3D will suffer the same fate.”

The Qualcomm dual core Snapdragon SoC model number is MSM8x60 — the x can either be a 2 which denotes GSM radio compatibility, or a 6 which denotes CDMA radio compatibility. Otherwise, from a processor perspective, they are the exact same CPU.

—-”Rather then have a separate HDMI port, the USB port doubles as an HDMI port—thanks to MHL. This means when you’re playing a game or watching a movie on your phone-powered TV, you’re also charging your phone with a single cable. This is not the case with normal HDMI.”

The MHL is designed to be used as a USB or HDMI connection, but in order to utilize HDMI out *and* charge at the same time, one needs an MHL-compliant TV. However, without an MHL compliant TV, one can still utilize the HDMI, it’s just that there will be no charging of the device.

—-”Unfortunately, when you want to take a 2D picture on the Evo, you only get a 5 Megapixel camera.”

I’ll just point out that upon the close launch between the iPhone 4 and Evo 4G, the Evo sported an 8 MP camera versus the 5 MP sensor in the iPhone 4. However, even as an Evo 4G owner and Android evangelist, I’m ready to openly admit that the iPhone 4′s camera is much, much better–particularly in low light. Anyone should know that megapixel counts only tell a very small, narrow part of the story of any digital camera.

I’ll also point out that one developing controversy in terms of a category not yet mentioned is the screen type/technology. Despite both phones sporting qHD displays, all Motorola devices on qHD have been using Pentile configurations which have been criticized by some. Thus far, the qHD display on the HTC Sensation uses a traditional RGB configuration. It’s not absolutely clear yet what kind of screen and the quality thereof will be on either the Evo 3D or the Photon, but you can be sure that it will be a huge point of contention between the two phones.

the photon has an locked bootloader and has moto blur and that is shit. 2.3 mm headphone jack and vga ff camers. The photon looked a little laggy and the evo 3d has sense and better processor. evo 3d owns the photon 4g

HTC design, HTC build quality, HTC sense, proven HTC support and quick updates, unlocked bootloader and wonderful HTC development community + opensense, 3d (gimmick or not), asynchronous dual-core, MHL when its supported. full HDMI mirroring, 8MP camera on the Evo 4G wasn’t that great, so I’m glad they went with a (hopefully) better 5MP sensor instead of marketing a poor quality 8MP camera.

I’m sorry, but this review was kind of pointless. Once you actually stack them up and compare the devices, not just the specs, the Photon is no contender. Thanks to this, I’ve sold my Evo 4G and pre-ordered my Evo 3D, the 24th can’t get here quick enough.

There is a reason the Evo 4G is still one of the top selling and best rated smartphones. HTC and Sprint really delivered and now have created a new brand on its reputation. You can expect the Evo 3D to really excel and set the benchmark for others to follow again.

I remember when the EVO 4G was brand new and everyone was bashing the 8mp camera saying it wasn’t sh*t compared to the iPhone 4 5mp just cuz its gotta higher number doesn’t mean its better. And please if u pick photon over 3d your mentally challenged unless you root ur phone your stuck with BLURRRrR. Even worse than a psycho ex gf lololololol

Im still kind of undecided. Theres advantages and disadvantagesto both sides. I love my evo 4g. But I think if the photon had a better ui I would take it. Even tho processor is clocked at 1ghz compared tot he evo 3ds 1.2ghz the tegra2 chip is running the arm cortex-a9 cores wich have more transistors, process more information. The rest of the chip is designed better too with better multimedia and image processing then the snapdragons “scorpion” arm cortex-a8 like setup. Even with those facts, fuck blur, ill probably get the evo 3d

This post is old, but in case you haven’t made your decision yet, or chose the photon and still wand sense back as I did, read my post below. If you want some links that make it very easy to root your phone unlock the boot loader and install sense UI on the Photon just ask.

Let’s be clear: the Sensation pushes 35% more pixels on its screen than the G2X, and when Quadrant benchmarks are run they run in native resolution. So the fact that it gets the same score as G2x while being 35% higher resolution (qHD people) means it is a TON faster. Try comparing the benchmark run at the same resolution and you’ll see the advantage the newer and faster Qualcomm chip has.

A month ago I would have said HTC no question. However, after the mess they’ve created with the “updates” for the EVO 4G, I’m ready to swear off HTC for good. Since the updates (yes, two of them, because the first one was so bad, and there are still a ton of issues even after the “fix”), SenseUI crashes AT LEAST 10 times a day, and that’s with me not using my phone a lot. If I use it heavily, that number easily doubles. And that’s not the only problem I’ve been having, just the most annoying. I’m not the only one either, and many people are having all sorts of problems with the update. What’s worse, HTC has offered NO response to this. Due to this level of ineptitude and neglect, I’ve lost all faith in them. I just hope people will take this behavior into consideration before deciding to give HTC more money for another phone they will almost undoubtedly provide lackluster updates and support for before ruining it as they have the EVO 4G. It has not escaped me that after a very long time of no updates, they finally release one for it which causes a mess of problems along the same time they release a nice, new phone.

Couldn’t make the decision when upgrading my phone, photon or 3d. Primary reason I wanted to update is processors and memory prior I was using htc 4g which had been one of my best phones for some time.
Stumped between the two here is something different that helped me make the choice (not turning the board into a political one either.)
HTC is from taiwan
Motorola is from China
Motorola left the usa and really doesn’t contribute much back and even asked to put made in American because they were previously an american company (sort of still are.)
But I would rather support the company from Taiwan right now than china and an american company that sold out for higher profits.

Evo 3d is certainly going to be a ground breaking phone with the 3D display. After all it has never been features on any smartphone ever before. But i guess time has come now where we look beyond its multidimensional display. It also has excellent connectivity features like DLNA, radio, MicroSD slot, ability to be used as a Wi-Fi hot spot and a dedicated USB storage support. And the best part is its processor clock speed of 2Ã—1.2Ghz, which is around 20% faster than the upcoming iPhone 5.

I’m extremely experienced in phones given my background of 16 of the greatest phones out from Tmobile as well as Sprint. I owned the Evo 3D from the day of launch and used the phone up until the day of launch of the Photon 4G. I then got the Photon and played with both for about a month. It was an extremely hard decision for me to make. I loved the 3D, it was a ton of fun at social events, parties, I even managed to take a picture of a beer pong ball coming right at the phone and it appeared to be coming out of the screen. I loved the UI, the sense experience is probably what made it the hardest decision for me to make. (I have since put the EVO 3D rom on my Photon and am extremely relieved. What got me was:

1) I use the kickstand about 20 times a day….

2) The speaker on the Evo 3D is near HORRIBLE! I couldn’t even hear my family talking while using Skype making the front camera pointless for me, even after rooting the phone and doing some tweaks to change the power to the speaker. (The Photon is the loudest phone I have ever used)

3) The HDMI feature is cool and all on the Evo although you need to use an adapter in which you plug your power and an HDMI cable into making the experience more of a pain in the *ss. I like that you can use the adapter without having to have a micro HDMI cable, however I just bought a micro to standard HDMI adapter for traveling. I rather just have to cables into my phone then a clunky adapter. (adapter also sold separately unlike most other phones with the same feature)

4) The 3D screen on the Evo gives you the feel of a thin piece of glass separating you from the UI. This however minimal drove me to loving the qHD display of the Photon (especially how outstandingly bright the phone is while the Evo always seemed a bit… dim.

5) The 3D is extremely funHowever when not in 3D the 2D camera was always a bit disappointing even after adjusting all the settings to take the best pictures possible. Don’t get me wrong, it took great pictures just not what you would expect coming from the Predecessor of the EVO 4G, but after a while it lost it’s spark in my eye and I found myself never really using the 3D. As I grew more and more disappointed in the 2D, I began to miss the kickstand and speaker on my Photon.

6) Both phones feel great in your hand, And I most definitely prefer the look and feel of the Evo 3D. It just seems more bold and Badass.

7) The Evo lagged at times when playing games, this was very disappointing. (lagged on Angrybirds…)

8) As awesome as the Qualcomm is, Android is not ready for it and the battery dies insanely fast as if your using one battery for 2 phones. The Lithium Polymer battery on the photon coupled with the Tegra 2 has been your standard lifetime, however with minimal use it last outstandingly longer then most devices I’ve owned.

9) I’m not 100% on which processor is “faster”, but the sense UI is so overloaded that the photon was an obviously faster experience.. The Snapdragon is just not a graphics processor and in the end I’m about how fast the phone is while using it and not whats been “tested” as a faster processor (the debate on these 2 processors is just as bad as the debate between iPhone and android).

10) My decision was I passed down the 3D to another line on my account and kept the Photon.

If your the kind of person who wants to show off your phone at social events and make iPhone users think twice about their decision, then the Evo 3D is certainly for you . However if your the person who wants a better “everyday use” phone and your a nerd who is going to stretch the limits of your device or you want to be able to kick out the stand, turn on Pandora, hop in the shower and still be able to hear it, then the Photon is for you.

I hope this helps some people make a decision. I also have a feeling a fan-boy will see my iPhone statement and get defensive so I’ll throw it out there that I also have an iPhone 4s… It’s a great Phone, Camera and Mp3 player…. I just prefer joining a technology that has no limits. Maybe it’s just me :)

Ive owened the photon for 4 months now and let me tell you i couldnt be happier< I dont get it ? the motoblur is sleek nice classy fast, Man I cant believe these old comments and people bashing the photon if they would have only known how much of a flop the evo 3d was, my god its embarrassing for people that have the 3d , seriously.ive heard about 3d call quality and sound from friends who own them. The call quality on the photon is amazing the speaker phone loud crisp and proud towering over evo, I never drop calls and always get a great wifi signal. The phone just got an update yesterday for full 1080p video recording, now im just waiting for my ICS update.haa , i might be waiting awhile .. but you know what I dont mind, I mean this phone just runs and runs great no matter what. Sorry guys better move on like HTC did and put all your money on the EVO 4G LTE which actually does look like a quality piece.